U.k. Visa Advice Required

[dee123]

hi my wifes daughter is currently in the u.k. on an sectors based scheme work permit which expires 6 march 2007.she wants to stay here with her mother and younger sister,she is 26....what is the best thing for me to do.

[dee123]

come on scouser i know you will know

[the scouser]

How long has she done on a Sector-based Scheme work permit? If less than 12 months, she can apply for an extension but will not get more than 1 year in total.

The whole idea of the SBS was to act as a short-term stopgap for low-skilled industries for which there were labour shortages, and it was never intended as a means to gain a longer stay in the UK. As a consequence, an SBS work permit does not allow the holder to seek leave to remain in any other capacity. Your step-daughter could apply for a standard work permit, but she would still need to do so from abroad and fulfil, amongst other things, the educational/work experience qualifications.

There are also other categories under which she can apply, but, again, any application would have to be from abroad and she would have to meet the criteria which pertain to that category.

Scouse.

[dee123]

thanks scouser your reply basically confirmed what i had already been told,although there was no mention of an sbs extension as it is now completely scrapped.so my only idea left is to get a visitors visa when she returns on the 1 march,can you see any problems with this?this has been her first visit to u.k her mother and sister have indefinate leave to remain,she wants to see her family as much as possible....thanks again

[the scouser]

....it is now completely scrapped....

In relation to new applicants, but not existing holders applying for an extension.

My personal perception is that having done the year's SBS, your step-daughter may now have dug herself into a bit of a hole. She's been living and working in the UK and has only stopped because the scheme has finished, and she's done her year. On top of this, her mother and sister are resident in the U.K. Now, given these circumstances, whilst not impossible for her to get a visit visa, the visa officer is quite likely to think that she's going back to the UK in order to resume her job. Your step-daughter will need something quite compelling to convince the visa officer that she has a reason to return to Thailand at the end of a visit.

All the best,

Scouse.

[dee123]

yes she been here for 10 months now but i phoned sbs and said i wanted extention they said scheme scrapped.

[dee123]

oh my god

[the scouser]

If come March she's only done 10 months, she might be able to squeeze another couple of months out of it. Here's the Home Office guidance (see section 3). However, if your step-daughter will have done a year in March, that's it, unfortunately.

Scouse.

[dee123]

erm????im gobsmacked it took two years with appeal on work permit then appeal with visa,let alone the appeals i done with my wife and other daughter i have never been successful straight away but all the appeals i won can they not see i am genuine after 10 years

[Mahout Angrit]

erm????im gobsmacked it took two years with appeal on work permit then appeal with visa,let alone the appeals i done with my wife and other daughter i have never been successful straight away but all the appeals i won can they not see i am genuine after 10 years

It is not judged on whether the sponsor is genuine but whether the applicant is genuine. You did say in your initial post that she wanted to stay in UK with her mother and sister, regretably as she is an adult she has to qualify in her own right to stay in UK, cant she cook and get a work permit or hasn't she attracted a prospective husband who could help?

[dee123]

sorry to ramble on but the effort we put in to get the work permit etc, i had personally to go to taylor house in clerkenwell with my solicitor to argue the case that they had no reason to doubt that she would not return to thailand after her initial 12 months was up,all we want is for a daughter to be able to see her mother do i have to go to court again to prove this ,i mean she has already booked her return flight for 1 march,so sticking to the rules dont they take that into account .actually the home office didnt bother turning up to back up their case last time..........what a shambles!!!

[the scouser]

It's more a question of unfortunate timing in that the category in which your step-daughter qualified has now been withdrawn. Additionally, as she is twenty-six, the law sees her as being an adult, so unless there is any compelling reason why she either can't return to Thailand, or has to stay with her mother, she will be expected to leave and apply in another capacity to return.

Scouse.

[Mahout Angrit]

sorry to ramble on but the effort we put in to get the work permit etc, i had personally to go to taylor house in clerkenwell with my solicitor to argue the case that they had no reason to doubt that she would not return to thailand after her initial 12 months was up,all we want is for a daughter to be able to see her mother do i have to go to court again to prove this ,i mean she has already booked her return flight for 1 march,so sticking to the rules dont they take that into account .actually the home office didnt bother turning up to back up their case last time..........what a shambles!!!

Of course she can make an application for a visitors visa but a visitor visa is given to people who want to visit the UK as a tourist not to people who want to use it as a convenient residence permit. What scouse is saying (I think) is that if she immediately applies to return to UK as a visitor it will be perceived that she wants to continue to live in UK (which is actually near the truth). If she waits 12months or so I should think she stands a good chance of being successful but it will be up to her to provide evidence in the form of a job or other that she will return to Thailand. That visit will be just a visit not a precursor to staying in UK.

[dee123]

i will take the judges decision with me to apply for holiday which says he found me to be totally honest in my statements.....of course she would like to see her family but as long as its legal.as i have told my wife and family all along.it seems to me if your an honest person you pay dearly for it ......

[dee123]

i undrestand your point mahout....thanks........im trying to cool down a bit

[Mahout Angrit]

i undrestand your point mahout....thanks........im trying to cool down a bit

And we understand your frustration and you wanting your family to all be together, just trying to point out how it will be looked at by those who control the immigration.

[dee123]

ok scouser how much do you charge to win this case for me

[dee123]

thanks for your kind reply,but how do i explain this to my wife and daughter

[Mahout Angrit]

thanks for your kind reply,but how do i explain this to my wife and daughter

Tell them you are all going back to Thailand....... where you can all live together!!!!

[dee123]

well i wouldnt mind all going back but reading all the latest thai restrictions etc....and the youngest is settled here with thai husband who has full time job ,he doesnt want to go back yet she has another baby on the way etc...etc....we just want the abillity for a young lady who has family in thailand ie granny ,cousins mums house to be able to fly over here when she is distressed or missing mum without all of us having to down tools and stop everything because she cant fly over here fo a few weeks holiday without having to spend two years and tax payers money to get another f.....g visa! god help us all!!!!

[the scouser]

ok scouser how much do you charge to win this case for me

If you're serious about requiring representation, then by all means drop me an e-mail to [email protected].

Off the top of my head, and not having done any research, there may be a human rights tack which you could take.

Aricle 8 of the Human Rights Act 1998 includes the right to family life. In general terms, this is a qualified right; i.e. limited interference in the right is allowed, and it can be derogated from in the wider interests of the state. The Home Office would normally argue that the family is free to accompany your step-daughter to Thailand, and you may enjoy your right to a family life there. However, in this instance, the family life has already been established in the UK, so it's not as straightforward for the Home Office to dismiss, especially if your step-daughter has no immediate family in Thailand to whom to turn.

Scouse.

[dee123]

thanks again scouse,i am serious, but i will do some home work tomorrow,ie sbs scheme etc.but the sort of things said to me were unless her life was in serious danger eg family member in iraq or something but you would know more about that than i.....mmmm?

[Mahout Angrit]

While I wouldn't want to pull the saucer from under Scouse's nose. I think its just some patience you need. If it really is only the visit to mum when feeling lonely she wants then if she waited a little over 6 months and applied for her first visitors visa (to visit for 4 or 5 weeks) it could well be successful as it is for visiting family. Then if she keeps to the terms of the visa she could step the next aplication up to a 1 year visa and then next time to a five year visa once she have proved that she is only visiting and not attempting to live in UK. She would have to have a reason to return to Thailand when she applies which at best would be a job then she would need a good boss who would let her flit off to UK at the drop of a hat

[dee123]

thanks again mahoot(wat a funny name for an intelligent fellow)